40k: 10 Things You Should Know About 6th Ed. Codices
Just over a year ago I wrote this article: 10 things you should know about 40k codex. Recently someone said what a great article it was and it would be great if I could do one on sixth edition codices, so here we go!
Mercer from Imperius Dominatus bringing you an article on the top 10 things you should know from each 6th edition codices. This one goes out especially to the guys who don’t run out and buy every codex.
I will say that I do not know every tiny little rule and these are just big things which jump to my head. You may have some of your own ideas which you think should be common knowledge 🙂
Remember, knowledge is power 😉
Chaos Space Marines
1. Models with the ‘Champion of Chaos’ rule must issue and accept challenges – if you know you’re gonna punk the Champion then challenge his monkey ass, he just can’t say no, he doesn’t have the heart 😛
2. A daemon weapon gives an extra D6 worth of attacks, though if roll a 1 the user takes a wound no armour saves (still take invulnerable saves and feel no pain) and is dropped to weapon skill 1.
3. Daemon Princes do not have marks and instead of have daemon of, these give different rules to marks, so pay that little bit of attention 😉
4. Warpsmith can curse a vehicle within 18″ and the vehicle’s guns have the gets hot rule for that turn. In addition the Warpsmith can shatter defences and do -1 cover saves on a terrain piece, though this cannot be purchased as part of the army. This Warpsmith fella is a sneaky chaotic hobo.
5. Chaos Spawn are now awesome customers who at the start of each fight sub-phase roll on a table and get a funky ability. Be very wary of these, they are incredibly dangerous.
6. Obliterators cannot use the same weapon for two consecutive shooting phases; so watch anyone trying to fire lascannons turn after turn. The same applies to Mutilators too.
7. Plague Marines carry blight grenades which are defensive grenades; annoying gits.
8. Heldrake can do vector strikes at S7 and has the it will not die rule – incredibly tough flyer.
9. Huron Blackheart allows you to infiltrate D3 infantry units; sneaky sneaky.
10. Typhus can make ANY Cultist units Plague Zombies – just think of Guardsmen with 6+ armour save, feel no pain, slow & purposeful and fearless.
Dark Angels
1. Dark Angels have the ‘grim resolve’ rule which gives them stubborn, though they can never choose to automatically fail a morale test.
2. When deep striking, Deathwing may choose to auto arrive turn 1 or turn 2. In addition when the units do deep strike their weapons are counted as twin-linked. They also have the split fire rule too.
3. Ravenwing units can be made up of six bikes, an Attack Bike and a Land Speeder. The bikes may split into combat squads of three per unit. In addition all bikes have teleporter homers, hit and run and scout – watch them or else they’ll be on you as quick as a whippet.
4. Ravenwing Command Squads and Ravenwing Black Knights carry the fearsome plasma talon – think of an 18″ twin-linked plasma gun. They may also switch these for the grenade launcher which can drop a small blast and do -1 toughness for a single turn – instagib Wraiths with plasma guns?
5. Ravenwing Darkshroud gives all units within 6″ the stealth rule and has shrouding itself. If any bike unit uses turbo boost then it will gain 4+ cover save while a Ravenwing Command Squad or Black Knight unit would gain a 2+ cover save as they have skilled rider!
6. If embarked upon a vehicle, the power field generator only works for models embarked upon that vehicle – note this FAQ ruling doesn’t say the power field generator works for the vehicle.
7. Azarel has a funky force field which gives 4+ invulnerable save to himself and the unit he is with – 4+ inv save Guardsmen blobs anyone?
8. Ezekiel’s mind worm power is S4 AP2 assault D3 ignores cover, for each unsaved wound reduce weapon skill, ballistic skill initiative and leadership by 3 for the remainder of the game.
9. Sammael is the only Dark Angels special character to have the eternal warrior special rule.
10. Speaking of Sammael, out of the special characters whose swords were made from the same rock, only Sammael’s is AP2.
Chaos Daemons
1. Daemons have the ‘daemonic instability’ rule which models with this rule automatically pass tests for pinning, morale and fear tests. If the unit loses assault it must take a daemonic instability test, take a leadership test and minus off any combat modifiers. For each point the test is failed by the unit suffers one additional wound with no saves of any kind allowed. In addition if you roll a double 1 all wounds suffered and models lost during this round of combat are restored. Roll a double 6 and the unit is banished – remove the unit from play.
2. Start of each SHOOTING phase the Daemon player must roll on the warp storm table IF Chaos Daemons are the primary detachment – so you do NOT do this if using Chaos Daemons as allies.
3. Karios Fateweaver head’s are each a mastery level 4 psyker, though you can only use one head per turn. Both heads know the psychic powers on the change discipline while the right head generates one power from divination and pyromancy while the left head generates one power from telepathy and biomancy. In addition Fateweaver’s staff allows you to re-roll a single D6 per turn.
4. Units of Slaanesh can run an extra 3″ automatically and also have fleet. Cavalry models run an extra 6″. A flying monstrous creature can run 2D6″, which with Daemon of Slaanesh can be re-rolled and add on top another 3″ 🙂
5. The Soul Grinder can ignore crew shaken and crew stunned results on a 2+. It is also the only ground based unit with the skyfire rule.
6. The lash of despair gift is strength: user assault 2D6. Put this gift on a Slaanesh Prince and get iron arm and you could have up to 12 x S9 shots!
7. Tzeentch flame weapons and psychic attacks have a rule called ‘warpflame’, which at the end of each phase if a unit has suffered unsaved wounds then it must take a toughness test. If the unit fails it takes D3 wounds no armour saves. If passes then the unit gains feel no pain (6+), if the unit already has feel no pain then all feel no pain rolls gain a +1.
8. The iron claw close combat weapon for the Soul Grinder is unwieldy, yet unwieldly doesn’t effect walkers, yeah go figure…
9. Flesh Hounds have the collar of khorne which gives the unit +2 to deny the witch rolls.
10. Chaos Daemons can take an exalted reward called the grimnoire of true names. This is used on a friendly unit on the roll of a 3+ that unit gains +2 to invulnerable saves. Fail this roll and the unit gains -1 to invulnerable saves. Enemy units with the daemon rule suffer -1 invulnerable saves.
Tau
1. Units in the codex have the army wide rule ‘supporting fire’, which if an enemy unit declares a charge all friendly units with this rule within 6″ may choose to overwatch. Note – can only fire overwatch once though, so no multiple overwatch hosings.
2. Ethereal has a 12″ bubble which all models within range can use the Ethereal’s leadership for fear, morale, pinning and regroup tests. In addition at the start each movement turn the Ethereal can use an ability which all units within 12″ gain; stubborn, +1 shot for pulse weapons (only effects once so cannot stack), feel no pain (6+) and fire snap shots after running.
3. Bodyguard Battlesuit has the ‘sworn protector’ rule, any I.C in a unit with a model with this rule will automatically pass look out, sir rolls.
4. The Riptide may draw power from the nova reactor and on a 3+ gets an ability; 3+ invulnerable save, 4D6 thrust movement, fire the twin-linked weapons twice or nova charge the ion accelerator or the heavy burst cannon. If this roll is failed then the Riptide takes a wound with no armour saves of ANY kind allowed.
5. Kroot can have sniper rounds – extremely dangerous!
6. Commander Farsight can deep strike without scatter, in addition can take a unit of up to 7 Bodyguard’s – Farsight bomb incoming!
7. Smart missile system ignores cover and doesn’t need line of sight, oossh.
8. High yield missile pods on Broadsides are 36″ S7 heavy 4 in addition the Broadsides can have interceptor or skyfire special rules thanks to wargear – good bye enemy flyers.
9. Markerlights can call a seeker missile, the missile fired this way does not need line of sight, resolved at BS5, has ignore cover and does not reduce the number of weapons a vehicle can fire, though does count towards the limit of missiles a flyer can shoot.
10. Some Tau battlesuits can take signature systems which give various abilities; command and control node gives re-roll to hit to the unit (bearer cannot shoot); multi spectrum suite gives ignore cover to the unit (bearer cannot shoot); puretide engram neurochip gives a choice of one of the following special rule; counter-attack, furious charge, monster hunter, stubborn or tank hunter.
Eldar
1. Majority of Eldar models have the ‘battle focus’ rule which allows the unit to shoot/or or run/shoot.
2. A Spiritseer can ‘spiritmark’ an enemy unit within 12″ at any point during the movement phase. All wraith units re-roll to hits of 1 against spirit-marked units.
3. Exarchs (squad leaders) can take various powers such as precision shots on a 5+, +1 strength, firing an extra shot.
4. Striking Scorpions are boss; they get stealth, infiltrate and move through cover – beware of these nasty elves.
5. Swooping Hawks have an ability called ‘skyleap’ which allows them to move into ongoing reserve. In addition when they arrive via deep strike they do not scatter. Extremely useful if you are the Eldar player and going second, send the unit into on going reserve then auto arrive on turn 5 and score linebreaker.
6. A Crimson Hunter can re-roll armour penetration rolls to glance or to penetrate when firing at the unit type flyer, if they they do not score a glancing or penetrating hit.
7. Holofields give +1 cover save – so that’s a 4+ cover save for moving as skimmers have jink and a 3+ if the skimmer goes flat out. 3+ cover if the skimmer is behind a ruin etc.
8. Weapons with the distort rule cause instant death or auto penetration on the roll of a 6+ to wound or to armour penetrate. Watch out monstrous creatures!
9. Monofilament weapons gain +1 strength if firing at models with initiative 3 or under or no initiative (like vehicles). Additionally, if a 6+ is rolled to wound it counts as AP1.
10. All shuriken weapons have the bladestorm rule; any 6+ to wound the target is automatically wounded and the wound is resolved at AP2.
There’s 10 things in the new sixth edition codices you should know. Of course there is more than likely some little bits I didn’t think of, what re your most important ten rules for the new codices you keep in mind?
